


Let's Be Forgiven

by originalcontent



Category: OK K.O.! Let's Be Heroes
Genre: I reference a few episodes that Ian talks about that didn't get a chance to get made, M/M, OK K.O Let's Be Heroes, P.O.I.N.T, Post Finale, Spoilers if you haven't seen Thank You For Watching The Show, Venomous has a lot of apology cakes to make, Voxman
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-09-09
Updated: 2019-09-19
Packaged: 2020-10-13 10:10:28
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 12,988
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20580794
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/originalcontent/pseuds/originalcontent
Summary: Things had finally gotten back to a sense of normalcy, Fink and Venomous were able to get their home back, they still attacked the Plaza and had a new value of their relationship. Venomous could appreciate her more and truly felt comfortable as he was now, without any powers to rely on. It seemed everything was looking up, until he let his thoughts wander and remember a select few whom he truly hurt and felt guilty about. Which wasn't very villain like of him. But before he can repress these feelings, Fink won't let him forget to talk to a certain ex partner in crime. And a few people from his past end up coming to Venomous.





	1. Let's Ignore Our Wrongdoings!

**Author's Note:**

> This is set after the finale of OK K.O Let's Be Heroes!; Thank You For Watching the Show. If you haven't seen that yet I would definitely recommend doing so before reading this. I reference some of the episode plots Ian talked about on his twitter that never got made into actual episodes. My co-contributor will be doing the Boxman chapters and I'll be doing all that's going on with Venomous, a nice back and forth. This first chapter I busted out because I was just entirely so excited to put something out after the finale so it's not beta'd (I'll fix it later) but I hope you can still enjoy it! Comments are always welcomed and appreciated!

It had been quite a while since Venomous had seen his old partner in crime. He wanted to go about it just right when it came to talking to him directly. His nerves were on edge, he wanted to talk and tell him how he regretted everything that happened, he wasn’t in his right state of mind. _Venomous_ wasn’t the one who treated Boxman so callously, it was _Shadowy Figure_ pulling the strings. So Boxman shouldn't blame him- but he knew he would. Because shifting the blame wasn't going to cut it and that terrified Venomous, so much so it overwhelmed him. These thoughts swarming his mind, telling him to rationalize everything that happened, they offered very little comfort. They weren’t solely focused on Boxman, they included K.O and even to a further extent, Carol. There was still a very small part of him that cared. But as of late, he had been slowly trying to rebuild his and K.O's prior relationship, fighting as good and evil. It wasn’t perfect but for now, it was something he felt was needed. Because he did mess up, and he needed to let the wound of his betrayal breath so that when he approached K.O he would have a better chance at reconciliation. But that was quite a ways down the road.

Something that continued to plague him however was that when he did go to attack the Plaza with Fink, he would always past Boxmore. He tried not to look, tried to ignore its existence. He had to fight to not let the memories of all the good times that they had at Boxmore, Fink, and Darrel getting along, Venomous and Boxman having a loving relationship that was built upon mutual respect for evil but became so much more. The casual embraces they would share, Boxman showed Venomous how to be openly affectionate. All of the once warm and happy memories were now tainted with the knowledge that Venomous had ruined it all himself. And those guilty thoughts would approach him and the worst times and he would try to brush them off the same way he would back when he still felt feelings for Carol. It would go back and forth from it wasn’t _his_ fault that he had hurt Boxman and his kids, that wasn’t _his_ doing. It was **Shadowy**, Shadowy was to blame for all his misdeeds. Even while telling himself this he did know that these were all convenient excuses. Because they were just that, excuses he knew that was why he hadn’t gone to see Boxman after everything. Deep down he knew that no matter what Shadowy did it was still Venomous who gave him control. Even when he knew it was going to lead to nothing but destruction and distraught for those he cared about. Which it did.

So Venomous put it off. Said he’d try tomorrow, maybe next week. Fink sighed and rolled her eyes each and every time Venomous said this. She stayed by his side, truthful to her word. Even when she was enrolled at Lakewood Public, she was upset but didn’t go against Venomous’ choice. They had sat down and talked it over, she wasn't too enticed by the idea until Venomous had mentioned she would probably be K.O's class and had the opportunity to ensure some class shenanigans. That had gotten her to come around to the idea and Venomous knew that getting her on a set schedule where she interacted with more kids her own age was a good thing. And he noticed she was having a great time, she would come home from school and tell her boss about everything she did. And when she wasn’t going to school, Venomous made sure to remind Fink how much she meant to him every day. He’d help her with homework, bake cupcakes, or other various baked goods such as cookies, cakes, all of which he had no talent for whatsoever. Which resulted in some pretty lumpy disasters that Fink loved to tease him endlessly about. And of course, they still did villainous acts every so often, and they did them together. After their escapades on their own little world, they had become closer than ever. 

When they returned to Earth they had attacked the plaza, things had gone back to a somewhat normal routine. It had just come together, they had the bio-mecha suits that could withstand space and they had stronger powers. And attacking the plaza just felt so right, even if it didn’t feel perfectly right. And after all that, they decided to stay on Earth, that it was time to set their roots again. They went to their old lair, it miraculously looked like it did before- well, it looked back to normal and not a pile of garbage. Venomous had chalked it up to the strange occurrence that happened after TKO zapped everyone of their powers. They resumed their lives, Venomous was able to do his work once more. He attributed the fact that he was able to sway his old clients with his casual charisma and charm, along with the fact they were villains, and while he wasn't trusted as he once was, he was still charming. That meant he was able to keep things financially stable and kept him somewhat preoccupied while Fink was at school and he was home. Alone. They attacked the plaza sparsely, Venomous having to deal with the backlash of going insane and trying to destroy everything. 

Which not only involved fellow _villains_, but also dealing with P.O.I.N.T, and the fact they knew just who Professor Venomous was. For the span of a workweek, Venomous got a visit from Grayman, Rippy, and Foxtail respectively. Greyman came to see if it was true that 'Laserblast' was still alive, and when he opened his door he looked at him long and hard. When asked who he was, Venomous told him he was Professor Venomous. When prodded with the question of who he was before taking on this persona, he told him the honest truth. That he was indeed Laserblast, which resulted in a harsh lecture but eventually became a long talk with Venomous inviting his old colleague in his home. They had a lengthy discussion, Venomous even opened up and told Greyman why he had made those terrible weapons and why he never showed his face to P.O.I.N.T, it was intense but he did feel a weight being lifted off his chest. In all his years, Venomous never would have thought that he would be sitting down and chatting with Greyman, learning why it was he was in a wheelchair. They conversed for hours and it ended on a neutral note. Greyman wished him all the best and Venomous did the same, surprisingly. The next visit by one of his old teammates was not so peaceful. 

When Venomous was out getting groceries and had his hat and sunglasses on, he heard that familiar voice of Rippy Roo. Turning around he was quickly sucker-punched in the face by a boxing glove attached to a spring which sent him flying onto the hard ground, all the items in his basket flying as well. Looking up from the floor he saw Rippy, she had changed hardly if only for her glasses. Her expression was something akin to what Carol had when she found out who he was. The look of someone who had wasted so much time caring for a false ghost. It almost looked like she was ready to beat him to a pulp with her own two fists but she had great restraint. Which was something she always had, a contributing factor to when he chose her to join their team. A lifetime ago, he would feel so terrible for all the things he had done to her and his other 'friends', but that wasn't who he was. Right now he was just someone who was frustrated that all his groceries were on the ground. Deciding to just sit there and take it, his expression masked neutral, he watched as she approached. She stood above him and chewed him out, Venomous all the while was rubbing his jaw and sitting up on the floor of the grocery outlet. Putting the spring action boxing glove back in her pouch, she yelled at him for a few more minutes while a small crowd of passerby's formed around them. Most likely no one else knew what she was saying, but Venomous did. She had spoken about how betrayed she felt, how hurt she felt, and how disgusted she was for what he did to Carol. That he had become a low-life villain that wasn't worthy of his son in any regard. Continuing on that same vein she said how much better off Carol and K.O were without him, her words dripping with disdain. Venomous had long abandoned any sort of feelings for his team-mates but this still stung. He was the one to recruit Rippy, she had looked for him for so long and dedicated a long portion of her life to finding him. A fruitless effort. Venomous responded with; "It's not my problem you wasted your life." She left without so much of a goodbye. 

And then Foxtail. That was the hardest. She called Venomous and requested to meet with him. And while he had 'politely' declined, she painted a very vivid picture of why he should agree. This picture would be all of P.O.I.N.T coming and kicking his door down and taking him by force. Least to say Venomous wasn't a fan of that painting and had changed his tune. They met at a small coffee shop in the plaza, which served to be uncomfortable from the looks most were giving him as he sat there waiting for Foxtail. He came at the exact time they agreed to meet, yet she was nowhere to be found. While tempted to leave after five minutes of waiting, Venomous knew he shouldn't. In the event of that painting becoming a reality, he had no choice but to wait longer while sipping his decaf, idly amused by the nervous looks most of the customers gave him. She did eventually come, no excuse as to what kept her. She didn’t say anything for a long while, the two of them simply staring at one another. Foxtail looked like she wasn't sure who he was, or more accurately she looked like she was trying to tell herself this wasn't her lost teammate Laserblast. Their conversation started off rocky and voices were raised (Foxtail) and calloused words were tossed around (Venomous) but they finally were able to have a conversation. She found her control and asked him why he did what he did, Venomous gave her the answer and she looked at him appalled. But she didn't say anything about it. She asked him a few more questions if he ever planned to contact any of them, when did he realize he had a son if he felt guilty. He told her, no, he didn't plan on talking to any of them, that he had only found out somewhat recently he had a son, and that no. He used to be consumed by his guilt but that was gone. Foxtail abruptly claimed she had to leave. She said they were going to be in touch soon which didn’t entirely bode well with Venomous but he decided to chalk that up as a win. All in all, it could have been worse and Venomous was happy to have his place back. 

Venomous was happy, to some extent. He had his minion and he had his career (even after all that happened, villains still flocked to him for bio-chemical weapons) but he knew he was missing something. Someone. Even if he tried to tell himself that was a closed chapter, just as he did with Silver Spark. But this time he couldn’t quite close the book. But that thought alone was something Venomous tried to push back, because if he acknowledged that then the pain that he associated with the incident would come in harsh waves. He had done some terrible things but a few in particular stuck out. They consumed him when he was least expecting it and he would lose himself until something snapped him out of it. Like now. 

“Boss? Boss!” Fink sat up from her seat at the table abruptly, shaking it to the point of nearly spilling over her cereal. 

“Hm?” Looking up from his morning paper, Venomous lowered it slightly. He had probably been on the same page for some time.

“Boss, just- look!” Ripping the paper from his hands, resulting in some of the pages being torn, Fink turned the paper to the front page and shoved it in Venomous’ face. “Look who made the front page, isn’t that just interesting?” She had a toothy grin, her intentions obvious from the look on her face.

“Huh...would you look at that.” Altogether abandoning the page he was reading, Venomous took the newspaper back in both hands and stared at the picture of Boxman in his mind. When he finally looked to the text beneath he had to squint and move the paperback to attempt to let his eyes adjust. “Well, good for him. He’s really… changing. I’m happy for him.” Smiling ruefully, Venomous let his eyes linger on the photo a bit longer than he meant to.

“Boss.” Tapping her fingers on the table, Fink stared at Venomous with a knowing look. 

“I know, Fink.” Folding the paper he put it down, the picture was face down on the table. Venomous knew his eyes would be drawn back to stare at it if he allowed himself. Voice solemn, he let his lips smile in a sad way. He was happy for Boxman, he had grown so much and become so much happier from all he saw. But to say he was happy with their current standing was too much. “I wish I could just go and tell him I’m sorry but it’s just been too long at this point. Who knows what he would say and- and I’m too busy. We have your parent-teacher conference coming up, it’s your first one and I plan on being there.”

“Jeez boss, we talked about this!” Throwing her arms up, Fink sounded exasperated at this point. “You know I don’t care if you come to this the stupid thing! And don’t use my life as an excuse to run away from your feelings.” Crossing her arms over her chest, she stared down Venomous and narrowed her eyes at him. “I know and you know that you miss Boxman. And…” Looking off to the side she started speaking a bit quieter. “...I kinda miss him...too…”

Venomous knew that Fink had grown up, she reminded him every day that she was going to be 13-17 years old sooner than he thought. She did more on her own without needing him, she made her own lunch (Venomous did make some alterations after he saw it was all junk food) and she got to school on the bus, so she didn’t need him to drive her. But still, this wisdom she seemed to possess had been sprouting up now that they were back home. Fingers brushing against the paper, he let his gaze fall and the silence was only disturbed by Fink huffing and excusing herself from the table. She was disappointed right now, that much was clear. But as she got ready for school she came back to the kitchen. At that point, Venomous had managed to pull himself together and start cleaning the dishes. She brought her bowl up to Venomous at the sink and he smiled.much more genuinely. 

“Thank you, Fink.”

“Yeah, yeah.” Taking the bowl and emptying the remaining contents, he heard the rustling of Fink getting her backpack and Lord of the Loot lunch box. “Have a good day, kiddo.” Expecting to hear her respond with something sarcastic or maybe dismissive due to her dip in mood, he was surprised to feel her hug his leg. Stopping, he looked at her, the bowl still in hand. “Fink?”

“I… want you to be happy, Boss. And I know you’ll be happy if you at least get to see Boxbutt, so promise me you’ll think about it?” 

How could he say no to that? 

“Okay, I promise.” Wiping his hands clean the dishtowel, he knelt down and gave her a good hug. She wrapped her arms around his neck and Venomous smiled all the more. Pulling back he pats her head and looked her in the eyes. “Now you get going, don’t want to be late for school, right?” Standing back up he held her hand and walked with her through the kitchen to the front door.

“Thanks Boss, but remember what I said. You can’t break a promise, okay?” Looking up at him, she had a determined look as she narrowed her eyes. Being sized up from someone who barely is tall enough to be the head height with your hip is certainly an experience. “I’ll be back and I expect you to have tried!” Letting go of Venomous’ hand, she ran to the bus that was waiting for her. 

“I get it, I get it. Have a good day!” Waving at her, she grinned and waved back as she jumped into the bus. Watching it take off, Venomous held his hands together behind his back. He did promise… now there was no excuse. 

Going back inside, Venomous went to grab his phone where he left it charging in his room, he looked up Boxman’s number. Was this even the right number still? Would Boxman even answer the phone when he saw who was calling? Venomous felt his chest constrict and his stomach drop. Facing this situation only served to make Venomous incredibly uncomfortable. He almost felt close to pressing call, until his nerves got the best of him. Locking it, he put it down on the charging stand. Once it was out of his hand he felt lighter, but the tense feeling in his shoulders remained. This was his problem, he hadn’t even allowed himself to really think about all that happened. Everything with Shadowy Venomous, the situation with Boxman, and the way his heart squeezed when he thought about how much he missed him. It was all too much. He could take on P.O.I.N.T, take them all on, but this was something all too harder. Fink’s voice echoed in his head, reminding him of their promise and Venomous sighed. Looking to the phone he balled his hands into tight fists. He’d try later. There was no rush.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I apologize that this is mostly set in a state of 'this is what happened', the next chapter will be more action-filled. I'll be posting it Wednesday, my posting schedule for this will be when I have my days off from work. If I only have one day off however I'll most likely post the following week depending on how busy I am. But I am going to be posting semi-regularly! Again, comments are always loved and appreciated, hope you enjoyed the first chapter!


	2. Let's Have a Breakthrough!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Venomous is deliberating whether or not he has the courage to speak to Boxman and talk about everything that's happened between the pair. Battling with his heart and mind if that's something he even wants. Venomous has to dig deep and see if reviving this relationship is even worth it or if it's time to move on.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you to TheDrawingBoard for beta reading this! I know this chapter out a day late, there were some complications yesterday but I hope everyone enjoys this chapter! I had a lot of fun writing this and I'm really excited to put the next chapter out! I'll be putting it out next Wednesday (hopefully) but at the latest, next Thursday. All comments are loved and appreciated! Have a wonderful day!

“Boss, I’m home!”

Running through the entryway, Fink was bolting into the house at top speed. Throwing her coat on the coat hanger, leaving her backpack at the door, and kicking off her boots, she scurried to her videos games. Stopping just short of where she left them on the couch, she looked over her shoulder, to where her boss was lingering in the kitchen. He was scrubbing the countertops in what seemed to be great concentration. This wouldn’t be too surprising unless you knew Venomous. He only cleaned like this when he was blocked by something. Looking between the two, Fink knew the right choice. Sighing she went to the kitchen where Venomous was attacking a particular spot on the reflective surface. 

“Uhh...boss? Whatcha… whatcha up to?” Even if she knew the answer, she still wanted to approach the topic as carefully as possible. “I think whatever was on there is long gone.” Fink was convinced if her boss continued scrubbing as he was right now then he going to scrub through the counter and break it.

“Huh? Oh.” Venomous was hunched over his counter with gloves and a surgical mask on, a very nearly broken bristle scrub brush in one hand and a bottle of home-made disinfectant in the other. It was nearly empty. “Sorry Fink, I didn’t hear you. Guess I was just focused. How was school?” He set the bottle and the pitiful brush down and turned his full attention to his minion.

“Fine, Ms. Quantum chose _me_ to direct the school’s Shucksgiving play!” Hopping onto one of the four black swivel stools that were sitting in front of a lilac marble island, Fink continued on with her hands outstretched. “So many of the other kids wanted to be the director but I rigged the random drawing Ms. Quantum set up!” 

“Oh did you now?” Not looking directly at Fink, Venomous went directly across from her on the island and reached up to grab her afternoon snack. Fumbling in the cabinet, Venomous spoke over his shoulder. “What’s the play about?”

“It’s- uh, it’s…” Her voice started loud and proud but began drifting off, Venomous pulled out a packet with cheese and stick crackers as he turned to see the look on Fink’s face. “Oh Cob, boss I forgot what the dang play was about!” Thudding her head on the counter, she groaned and ruffled her hair. 

Setting the cheese and crackers in front of Fink, she grabbed them without lifting her head and peeled back the plastic covering and began to scoop up some cheese with the stick expertly. Venomous hummed and grabbed her a small box of apple juice and put the straw in for her, sliding it to Fink on the table’s smooth surface. 

“Well, you can figure out more about it tomorrow. Maybe talk to a classmate and get the gist of it from them.” Sitting across from her, Venomous rested his elbow on the counter, chin in palm as he watched her raise her head. A few green strands fell in front of her face, an expression that was a mixture between disbelief and annoyance. “What?”

“Tomorrow’s Saturday boss, I don’t have school ‘till Monday.” 

“Oh.”

Fink began eating her snack, Venomous pulled out his phone and started going through his emails. Swiping through them quickly, it didn’t go unnoticed that Fink began eyeing him. They sat in silence for a few minutes before she finally spoke up, just after she polished off her last cracker. 

“Hey boss, I was so excited about the play I forgot to ask,” Lifting the container she licked some off the remaining cheese that was inside of it, her gaze never wavering for a second. It was impressive. “Did’cha ever call?” Remaining vague, Venomous felt strangely intimidated by her line of questioning. 

“Ah, well I’ve been so busy cleaning today I didn’t have a chance. I was beginning to grow frustrated with the state of everything.” Averting his gaze from Fink, he looked only at his phone, straightening his posture while doing so.

“_Oh_.” Nearly mimicking Venomous (most likely intentionally) Fink seemingly dropped the topic as she started sipping her juice box. There was another beat of silence as Venomous continued going through his emails until he was at the end. When that happened he decided to go through old messages, deleting for the sake of clearing up any clutter on his phone.

Then he saw his and Boxman’s messages. Eyes widening a fraction, he looked to Fink quickly and saw she was busying herself by reading the back of her juice box. That’s right, they had little riddles on the back of those particular boxes, that’s why Venomous bought them. She liked riddles. Eyes darting back to his phone, he stood up and locked it. 

“I’m going to take a shower, make sure you start working on whatever homework you were given. I’ll be back in twenty minutes to help with what you don’t understand.” Fink nodded silently, still intently reading her juice box as Venomous passed by. His lab coat fluttering behind him as he made a beeline for his room. Once inside he closed the door behind him and locked it. He felt like a teenager again, hiding something from his family he was too ashamed to speak about. Too ashamed to even acknowledge to himself. 

The circumstances were vastly different. For one, Venomous had long already accepted his sexuality and wasn’t a self-conscious pre-pubescent child. He was an adult. An adult who feared that if he talked about how much he missed a certain someone, he would have to acknowledge how wrong he was. To face all the atrocities that he- no, that Shadowy had committed...it was more than daunting. But as soon as Venomous saw the first of their final text exchanges on his tiny screen, he knew he would cave. Venomous was bad at saying no to Fink, he was even worse when it came to his own desires. Leaning against the door, he pulled out his phone and went back to the messages, scrolling through them. 

[ (x weeks ago) Wed. 6:38 P.M - Boxman ]  
>> Hey PV! Can’t wait to see you later!  
>> I’m MAKING dinner tonight! 

[ (x weeks ago) Wed. 6:41 P.M - Venomous ]  
>> OK 

[ (x weeks ago) Wed. 7:12 P.M - Boxman ]  
>> oh  
>> change of plans we’re ordering 

[ (x weeks ago) Wed. 7:13 P.M - Venomous ]  
>> …  
>> Box, is everything okay? 

[ (x weeks ago) Wed. 7:25 P.M - Venomous ]  
>> I’m heading home now  
>> Call me when you can 

Ah, the pot roast incident. Venomous smiled fondly as he recalled Boxman calling him up hardly a minute later explaining the entire situation. He had tried cooking what he planned on making Venomous the night he came for a client meeting, however, Boxman mucked things up again by thinking that putting the oven on a higher setting meant it didn’t need to cook for as long. They ended up ordering out, which was still delicious but they all ended up having a good laugh. Venomous remembered the kiss he gave Boxman that night, Boxman was still easily flustered when receiving a simple kiss. This was so long ago, but it felt so recent. Venomous had been late coming home after meeting up with a few choice select villains. It was more for work than for pleasure, especially when it concerned Billiam and champagne. Rolling his eyes at the memory, Venomous continued looking at the messages.

[ (x weeks ago) Fri. 4:56 P.M - Venomous ]  
>> Boxman, I’m planning our next outing  
>> Which do you prefer  
>> Petting zoo or theme park 

[ (x weeks ago) Fri. 4:58 P.M - Boxman ]  
>> OHHH  
>> Great choices PV!!!  
>> Petting zoo or theme park...hmmm 

[ (x weeks ago) Fri. 5:01 P.M - Venomous ]  
>> Thank you, which do you prefer? 

[ (x weeks ago) Fri. 5:11 P.M - Boxman ]  
>> Well petting zoos are great  
>> But I personally LOVE rollercoasters!!! 

[ (x weeks ago) Fri. 5:12 P.M - Venomous ]  
>> Boxman 

[ (x weeks ago) Fri. 5:15 P.M - Boxman ]  
>> Sorry! It’s just so hard to choose!  
>> Why not both? 

[ (x weeks ago) Fri. 5:18 P.M - Venomous ]  
>> Both?  
>> Actually I think we can do that.  
>> Good choice, can’t wait. 

[ (x weeks ago) Fri. 5:19 P.M - Boxman ]  
>> Thank you! 

That’s right. It was Boxman’s idea that their next family outing would be a full-on vacation, they took all the kids to a theme park and then followed it up with a trip to a petting zoo. Venomous remembered fondly how happy everyone was. There was a small incident where Fink got lost, Venomous nearly tore the entire park down looking for her. He was as frantic and high strung as any parent would be if their 6-11 year-old was lost in a giant stranger infested park. Venomous was running around while Boxman and his kids scattered about, most likely becoming frazzled due to Venomous’ distressed state. It was Darrell who ended up finding her: she was popping all the balloons in a free balloon cart. 

Venomous remembered how relieved he felt, how he had been reduced to a shaking mess when he thought he couldn’t find her. Boxman was there the entire time, reassuring him they would find her. And when they did, he helped Venomous calm down. Boxman was there, holding his hand and being so kind and good to him while that entire ordeal was going on. No one had ever been able to help him that way while in that state. Not that many had tried, Venomous was usually calm and collected but when he thought something happened to Fink or if he was stressed out from a horrible night's sleep, or suffering from a particularly bad headache, he was pretty terrifying to be around. But Boxman didn’t use that as an excuse. He even seemed to be used to it, or immune by that point.

Pushing himself off of the door, Venomous lowered his phone and went to his large, luxurious bed, falling back into the deep purple duvet. Bringing the phone back to eye level, Venomous looked at the screen, deciding to look at the last few messages exchanged between them before everything went to hell. He hesitated before actually reading them, but once again his poor impulse control helped win the swaying battle. Scroll down to the more recent messages, he sighed. He remembered these.

[ (x weeks ago) Sun. 2:36 P.M << Boxman ]  
>> PV!  
>> Everything’s set up for tonight!

[ (x weeks ago) Sun. 2:41 P.M << Venomous ]  
>> Great, I’ll be heading home soon  
>> Should be almost done at the dentist 

[ (x weeks ago) Sun. 2:41 P.M << Boxman ]  
>> Great! Any cavities? 

[ (x weeks ago) Sun. 2:44 P.M << Venomous ]  
>> No  
>> I make sure she brushes every night 

[ (x weeks ago) Sun. 2:45 P.M << Boxman ]  
>> Great job with your minion! 

[ (x weeks ago) Sun. 2:46 P.M << Venomous ]  
>> Thanks 

[ (x weeks ago) Sun. 2:49 P.M << Boxman ]  
>> I’m excited for tonight!!  
>> I even got the lavender candles! 

[ (x weeks ago) Sun. 2:51 P.M << Venomous ]  
>> I’m excited too 

[ (x weeks ago) Sun. 2:56 P.M << Boxman ]  
>> Venomous, thank you for all you’ve done  
>> I’ve never felt so happy 

[ (x weeks ago) Sun. 2:57 P.M << Venomous ]  
>> Me too. I love you, Boxy 

[ (x weeks ago) Sun. 2:57 P.M << Boxman ]  
>> I love you too  
>> Happy anniversary PV!!! 

[ (x weeks ago) Sun. 2:59 P.M << Venomous ]  
>> Happy anniversary 

This final exchange made his heart squeeze painfully, his eyes stinging at the simple words on the screen. Dropping both hands at either side, he let his phone fall from his hand. Staring at the ceiling, he remembered that night. When he got Fink from the dentist, he took her out to celebrate her no cavities with ice cream from Weiner Kabob. He then took Fink to get a new weapon and grabbed dinner for the kids on the way home. Venomous remembered being pretty excited on that drive home. And when he and Fink came home with food for everyone, he was happily surprised by a giant card made by all the minions. 

It wished he and Boxman a happy anniversary. Venomous had never felt so touched. And then the rest of the day, the kids all made sure to leave Boxman and Venomous alone and that night… it was so wonderful. So much tender love, sweet kisses that left a warm tingling sensation that seemed to never go away. And the nights they slept together, falling asleep with his soft snores, hearing him mutter about destroying this or attacking that, it was endearing. It was hard getting used to something that had become a welcomed staple and suddenly losing it. Venomous didn’t sleep half as well anymore after everything that happened. Everything was so perfect. Venomous never had so much without sacrificing something huge in return.

Now, he was faced with a troubling situation. Boxman hadn’t tried to contact him at all since everything happened at the Bodega. Even when he came back from the other planet, Boxman had yet to even call him once. Things were so different now- they were on very different footing. Venomous was now the nervous one, hoping and pining for Boxman’s attention. Of course, he had the option to initiate contact, but something prevented him. Sitting up on his mattress, Venomous left his phone face down and looked towards the window. Seeing a small Fuschia pterodactyl passing by, Venomous heaved a sigh and felt his bed vibrate slightly. Grabbing it quickly he felt hope swell inside of him. It couldn’t be-

It wasn’t.

“Yes, Billiam?” His tone nearly betrayed the attempt of sounding pleasant. Thank Cob he wasn't facing timing him. He would not be able to even try to look interested. His disappointment crashing down into him as he looked down, checking his nails as Billiam responded.

“Ahh, Professor! Did I catch you at a bad time?” He sounded absolutely giddy. It was pretty irksome, yet he contained his displeasure. “I’ve been meaning to call for some time, but I haven’t had a chance.” 

“No, no. I was just...getting ready for dinner. But I have time, did you need something?” Venomous just wanted to get on with it. His irritation was growing a mile a minute. 

“Ah yes, well I wanted to confirm the order request I put in a few days ago.” 

“It sure has been confirmed.” There was something else. With Billiam he never just called for one thing. Especially not when it came to topics such as business- it was always guised as business talk. Venomous just wished he would cut through the bullshit and get to the point of it before he lost his patience. 

“Ah, yes well, I’m glad to hear it! I look forward to its completion. You always have been an efficient villain after all.” He heard the other laugh on the other line, deciding that he wasn’t just going to sit around waiting for Billiam. Getting up, Venomous went to the bathroom and put Billiam on speaker. “Well, I hope you’ve been well! We really do need to get together, ah you should come to the newest spa I’ve opened, it’s past Neo Riot City, it’s quite lovely and very exclusive.” 

“Uh-huh, I bet you’ve really outdone yourself with this one Billiam. I’ll get back to you about when I can make it down next.” Fixing his makeup, Venomous began redrawing on his eyeliner as he listened to Billiam. “Was that it, or was there something else on your mind?” Carefully adding the wings, Venomous stopped and admired the new and refreshed eyeliner on his right eye. 

“Ohoho, we certainly will, Professor.” Rolling his eyes, Venomous started on his other eye. “By the way, I wanted to ask if you heard about Boxman.” Nearly messing up his eyeliner, Venomous glared at his phone as if Billiam could feel it.

“What about him?” Either Billiam was too stupid to hear the tone Venomous’ words carried, or it was lost through their phone call. He didn’t like where this was going. He knew how people like Billiam thought about Boxman and he didn’t appreciate it.

“Well, he gave up his company, to his robots.” Hearing Billiam criticize Boxman, it made his skin itch. Staring at his reflection, his eyes intently looking back at themselves as he tried to ignore this feeling. “I mean, isn't that the silliest thing you’ve ever heard?”

“I wouldn’t say that.” Keeping his responses short, Venomous slowly started re-applying his make-up. The chortle of a response he received from Billiam provoked him even more. 

“Oh Professor, you really are too kind for your own good!” That particular comment rubbed him the wrong way. Venomous remained silent, miraculously finishing his eye make-up with fair results. Brushing his hair he listened on. “You’ve always been too forgiving of that barbarian’s shortcomings. Even going as far as to help fund his little toy robot factory.”

“I wasn’t pitying him, Billiam.” His voice raised slightly as he set the brush down perhaps a bit too hard. Taking the phone in his hand he continued to glower at it; “I find his brand of villainy lacking in most people today.” The slow back and forth of classic evil, as he put it once. “Boxman may have some quirks, hell he screws up royally a lot of the time. But he remembers what it meant to be a real villain.” 

“Uh, Professor Venomous? Did I touch a nerve?” A beat of silence, Venomous’ scowl was slowly fading as his gaze looked back to his reflection. “I know you two were friends, however, I thought because you and he stopped working together that perhaps you had some sort of falling out. I did not mean to offend you.”

“We were together.” It just slipped out, he wasn’t even looking at his phone now.

“You- you were together? As in…?”

“I gotta go Billiam.” As he hung up he heard Billiam saying something but it didn’t matter. Looking at his reflection for a long while, Venomous knew he had to finally take a stand and do the right thing. Or else he’d regret it for the rest of his days. Looking back at his phone he unlocked it and went to his contacts. Slowly going to Boxman’s contact info, Venomous stared at the name for a long time. He had set a picture there, he had taken down at some point since their break up. He missed it. Finally finding the courage he had been lacking for weeks, Venomous hit call and put the phone to his ear, marching back into his room.

What was he doing?? Calling out of nowhere, it was smack dab in the middle of the day! He was probably busy, and if not, why would he answer? Boxman probably hated Venomous, he had every right to! But what if he didn’t answer? If he didn’t answer then should he leave a message? What would he say? Oh, Cob, what was he going to say if he did answer?! Oh COB, he really didn’t think this through! It was too late to hang up and-

“I’m sorry, the number you’re trying to reach is no longer in service.”

Oh. He changed his number. That felt anti-climatic. Hanging up and pocketing his phone, Venomous rubbed the back of his neck, groaning quietly. Of course. Why would this even be slightly easy? Closing his eyes and tilting his head back a touch, Venomous took a deep breath and re-opened his eyes. Walking out and heading for the dining room to check on Fink, he saw her in the living room playing videos games. Typical. Smiling, all the same, Venomous approached silently and was able to sneak up on Fink.

“Haha! Take that, you crud munchers!” Playing with gusto, Fink had her headphones in and was entirely focused on the giant television screen. Going behind where she sat on the couch, Venomous pulled back the headphones. “Whoa-oh, uhh, hey boss!” Laughing nervously she paused the game and looked up at him with a giant toothy smile. “I-I didn’t think you’d be back so soon!”

“Relax. Did you at least start on your homework?” Moving so that he was at a better angle for her to look at, Fink uprooted where she was sitting so she could be facing Venomous. “Or did you just start playing as soon as I left?”

“I did start on it! I swear!” She crossed her heart and gave Venomous a look that nearly melted his heart. Remaining strong, he smiled a touch.

“Besides writing down your name and the date?

“...I’ll go get started.” 

“Yeah, c’mon.” Turning off the T.V, Venomous walked with Fink to the dining room and helped her get out all her homework. “You know, I was pretty good at school. And I am a professor.” 

“Wow, I would’a never guessed, boss.”

The pair chuckled as Venomous began looking over Fink’s work. Taking a seat next to her, he began explaining the problems she had the most trouble with. Fink was a bit apprehensive at first about telling Venomous about what parts she had been struggling with the most, but after a bit of coaxing, she finally caved and told him. She got frustrated a few times, Venomous would have her take breaks and they would watch some silly cat videos or see a demonstration of the newest weapons on the villains market. Then they would get back to it while having a small snack. In the end, they finished way ahead of schedule. For all her hard work, Venomous let Fink choose where they would order dinner that night. 

They went through their routine of eating, cleaning up, Fink getting ready for bed and Venomous began his own nightly ritual. Removing his make-up, cleaning and washing up for the end of a long, long, long day. Exhaling slowly as he got into his bed, he set his alarm and looked to his phone. He wished he just had… oh. Wait. Going to his cloud storage, Venomous smiled and a bubble of laughter left his lips, eyes clouding up as tears began to form. Looking through the photos he’d long since deleted while in that horrid state, Venomous looked and looked. So many of him and Boxman, many just of Boxman, and many of their kids together. It brought so many emotions to the surface as he looked through them. Gasping softly he clicked on one, making it full screen. Another hiccup of laughter as he looked at Boxman’s face, the photo was their first real date together. They had gone to a villain only resort and the way the candlelight hit Boxman at that moment, it was a thing of beauty. He had some sauce from the pasta on his cheek. Boxman’s gaze was fixated on a stage performance, and he looked absolutely elated. 

This date was to celebrate the merging of himself and Boxmore, it was so wonderful and had left quite the impression on Venomous. Swallowing a hard lump in his throat, Venomous saved the single picture and locked his phone. Putting it on the small end table next to his bed, he turned so his back was on the mattress, his thoughts slowly drifting back to Boxman. It was a beautiful sort of pain that brought not only tears but a smile. The emotions danced together and kept Venomous from fully falling asleep until he tired of having so many brute emotions attacking him all day. Before he fully fell asleep, he promised himself one thing. He would not cry again until he had spoken to Boxman. Worthless tears like these offered nothing but regret. 

The following morning Venomous helped Fink get ready for the day. He managed to get a babysitter at the last minute and explained to Fink he had some errands to run. Honestly, Venomous was just relieved that they even allowed anyone to come to his house. Fink had a reputation of scaring off most babysitters halfway through their service. Taking off once the sitter arrived, Venomous had dressed in his usual get-up and may have worn his water-proof mascara and sealed his make-up with the strongest barrier spray he had. Just in case. Getting into his car he knew where he could get ahold of Boxman’s new number. Driving through the neutral zone, Venomous had the windows rolled up and the A.C blasting, his nerves jittery since he woke up. It was hard keeping anything down for breakfast. 

If this was going to work, he was going to have to persuade those he had betrayed and hurt. He needed to make amends and that wasn’t exactly his forté if history proved anything. But there was no helping that. Venomous had made up his mind since last night: he wasn’t going to back down now. He wouldn’t be able to live with himself. Once Boxmore was in sight, Venomous immediately felt all his worries and anxieties fall on him like a ton of bricks. Swerving and nearly hitting three pedestrians, Venomous skirted into the Bodega’s parking lot. Breathing heavily for a moment, it felt like he couldn’t breathe properly- like the air in the car had evaporated. His chest hurt, really hurt. Leaning back into the leather seat, he attempted to take deep breaths. He almost felt as if he was going to throw up. Shoving the car door open, Venomous fought his seat belt and landed on his hands and knees. 

“Hey are you- oh. Oh, it’s you, yikes.” Who said that? Looking up, Venomous saw it was just one of the regular inhabitants of the plaza. Squinting at him, he tried to stand but he couldn’t seem to get his footing. He heard the bear run and yell something. Struggling to stand, Venomous leaned on his car as he looked down at his sweaty palms, the sun suddenly feeling like it was beating down harder on him. Suddenly a new shadow appeared. Looking up, he saw a face he really didn’t want to see again.

“What the heck do you think _you’re_ doing here, Venomous?” Carol said the words, ironically, with venom. She had her arms crossed and was glaring acutely at him. She really did not look happy to see him here. Looking back down, Venomous attempted to compose himself as he felt his cheeks flood. Embarrassed by the predicament, he knew he would garner no pity from her. Nor did he want it.

“I just made a wrong turn. Trust me, and I’m not here for a fight today.”

“Oh yeah?” She looked him up and down, something flashed in her eyes and she sighed heavily. “Yeah, well you look awful. Why even bother coming down to the Plaza, there’s nothing for you here.” She didn’t intend for it to come off as harsh as it did, but she hardly cared. Carol was seething.

“I know that.” Snapping back at her, his eyes were glossy as he did his best to stand without the assistance of his car. But everything felt off-kilter. “Now just leave me alone and I’ll be out of your hair.” Slumping back against his car he took another few short breaths.

There was a beat of silence. 

“Venomous, are you here to see Boxman?”

Looking up at her, he knew she could see everything she needed to on his face. She rubbed her temples and looked around, a few heroes who happened to be around were watching intently. Looking ready in case Venomous tried anything. Carol looked to the villain and saw there was no way he was pretending to be this bad off. Really not wanting to, Carol sucked up her anger and gestured to her dojo.

“Look, just- get in my dojo and you can sit down.” Venomous was about to protest when Carol up and grabbed his arm, hard, dragging him behind her. Her grip was as tight as a serpent coiled around its prey. ”Don’t make me regret this more than I already do, you snake.” Her voice was low, anger, and hurt seeping through. In the haze of it all, Venomous thought about how he really did hurt her. And that he did feel bad, even if he would never admit it. Looking at her from behind, he felt his thoughts drift back to all of their shared time, and he really did feel bad. But he felt worse about what he did to Boxman, and that kept his head spinning.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I referenced another tweet from Ian JQ, he and Toby Jones talked about Billiam Milliam having a spa as a plot of an episode! Thought it was neat and wanted to bring it up at least once. Still dying over Voxman and this is really helping me get out all the unresolved questions that linger over my head- what was the biggest thing that you guys were curious about?? Comment below and maybe it'll give me ideas for the next chapter!


	3. Let's Get Confrontational!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Venomous finally starts to get some answers about what Boxman's been up to since the showdown with Shadowy Venomous and the wish that K.O had made after winning the tournament. He's surprised to see just how much he messed up, and that a simple restart of the universe can't fix everything. And Fink brings a friend from school over, a familiar face Venomous wasn't expecting to see.

“Drink.” Handing off a cup of water to Venomous, Carol made sure they didn’t touch at all, her gaze averted while doing so. Venomous was on his knees, kneeling on one of the Zabuton cushions Carol had in the corner of her dojo. Not saying anything in reply, Venomous took the glass and stared at it, then her, then back to the glass. “I didn’t do anything to the glass, jerk.” She bit out her remark and walked to another part of the dojo. 

Venomous began drinking, feeling his head pounding as the tingling sensation in his limbs started to subside. He was starting to calm down. Closing his eyes he could smell incense burning somewhere, something like jasmine? He couldn’t quite place it but it did soothe him. As he took another long sip he noticed music started to play. Something soft in the background, something with strings and flutes. She probably had it on during her meditation or maybe when she taught her classes. Carol returned with a blindfold and small...ball? 

“I’m going to blindfold you so you can relax.” 

“Silver, I-”

“_No!_” Her tone before had been a cold bite, suddenly it became an overwhelming blizzard as she lost her temper for a moment. Realizing that she had done so, she sighed and sat across from him. “Don’t.” Venomous looked to her, she looked back with a stern look. “Don’t call me Silver, Silver Spark, just… don’t.” 

“What should I call you?” His question came out a bit sarcastic, which made Carol’s eyes narrow. “I mean that in the most sincere way.” Clearing his throat, Venomous at up and set his cup aside. Looking to the blindfold he looked back to Carol. “Let me?”

“Fine.” Tossing it to him, Venomous caught it and took a deep breath. His heart was still having trouble settling, his hands were still trembling, but he was feeling better than he had out there. After Venomous blindfolded himself, he was given the small rubber ball. “Feel this, squeeze it, and focus on it. Use both hands, memorize every bump, every dent, feel how much you can squeeze it. Feel how much you can stretch. Just let yourself go.”

Venomous did what she said, the music slowly fading. Whether that was Carol lowering the volume or Venomous tuning it out, he didn’t know. Rolling it around his hands a few times, he found himself calming down completely. His worries about Boxman, his concern about his past, his general fear of not being strong enough for those around him started to dissipate. Before he knew it, he heard that familiar voice speaking to him. Soft, warm, so familiar, and yet not so familiar. 

“Open your eyes.”

As he did as instructed, Venomous opened and it took him a moment to realize he didn’t have the blindfold on anymore. He felt fine- better than fine, he hadn’t felt this good in a long time. Looking at Carol, she had a focused look. It was as if she was talking to an unpleasant stranger. Looking around, everything still looked the same. The music was still playing, the smell of incense still lingered and the sky hadn’t changed. 

“How long was I out?”

“‘Bout ten, fifteen minutes. Give or take.” Shrugging while she responded, her tone was still neutral. “So, I take it you’re feeling better.” Stating this matter-of-factly, Carol stood up and put her hands on her hips as she hovered above him. “Now you better have a damn good explanation for why you’re here.”

“Y’know I really thought you gave up swearing.” Deflecting the question as he gradually got to his feet, Venomous dusted himself off. “It’s like you said. I came for Boxman.” Saying that aloud made him anxious, as if the word got out then Boxman would up and vanish. Even if that’s pretty much what happened already. 

“Mhm, then why park in the bodega- and don’t you read the news? Or even listen to it? Boxman gave up his company to his robots. He’s not there anymore. You’re just wasting your time.” She was starting to get snippy, which, granted was very much expected. It just annoyed him slightly. 

“I know that.” His voice came across as frustrated, something he had been attempting to cover up. But even if he felt better now, that didn’t mean it would last very long. Not when he felt so strongly about this situation. And having Carol here really did not help things.

“Then _why_ did you park in the plaza-”

“_Because I was scared_, alright?!” Body tensing up, his voice raised, Venomous clenched his fists and glared at her. “I was scared that if I tried to get in contact with him all I would get is a door slammed in my face!”

“Well, that is what you deserve.” Her words were cold, bitter. She kept standing above him, casting judgment down harshly. “After everything you did, all the people you hurt- do you honestly think you deserve a happy ending?”

“Oh please, spare me the lecture.” Looking up at her, his eyes glazed, defenses back up. Venomous had heard enough. “Your holier-than-thou speech is pure drek. You and I both know that you’re just upset I’ve moved on with my life and all the while you’ve been mourning a man you thought was dead because he was too weak to survive.” Standing up, eyes locked with hers, Venomous continued with a slight hiss.

For a while, Carol didn’t say anything. She just stood there, glaring at a man she once called a friend. Now he was nothing more than a despicable foe, one who truly had no interest in their child or in reconciliation. He was beyond any form of help. Venomous felt his frustration slowly slip and could see that Carol was more upset than she truly was letting on. 

“Get. Out.” The words came out hard, barely getting them through her teeth. Venomous sighed and gestured vaguely with one hand in a circular motion. As if to wave off her troubles. 

“Listen, Carol, I-”

“I said, GET OUT!” Punching him square in the face, he fell backward onto the polyethylene mat. Thudding when his backside hit it, he was quietly grateful that the mat was softer than the rest of the flooring. Rubbing his jaw he looked back up at Carol, her eyes looked glossy and they held a deadly look. Turning around she kept her posture erect. “Leave right now and a sore jaw is the worst of your problems.”

Tempted to say something, to just maybe apologize or to insult her, Venomous reluctantly abstained from all of it. Once back on his feet, Venomous turned around and left the dojo without glancing back. Heading to his car, Venomous looked to his car. Smiling a touch, he was happy it wasn’t touched while he was having a meltdown. As he was approaching his car however he felt a pair of eyes searing into him. Carol? No, taking a moment he looked to the bodega and locked gazes with his old teammate. El-Bow.

“Great day, isn’t it?” Words dripping with sarcasm, Venomous gestured to everything around him. “The sun must always shine here.” A terribly vexed look mirrored each other as they stood there. Then suddenly El-Bow looked at him from over his sunglasses and Venomous felt a bit of sweat bead down his temple. Without another word, Venomous got in his car and pulled out of the plaza and quickly pulled into Boxmore.

Suddenly the nervousness was on the back burner, something else rose inside of him as Venomous took a deep breath. Turning his car off, he opened the door and stared at the building. Something akin to nostalgia began to dig into his skin. He never thought he would ever miss seeing his influence here at this robot factory. But he did. Checking his watch he saw that he had a few more hours before Fink's babysitter had to take off. It was a bit strange that she was some of the driving forces pushing him to go and do this. Most of the time when he and Boxman were together she would act out, make fun of Boxman, things that a child did to get attention. However, he did know that while Venomous was being undertaken by Shadowy, Boxman stepped up and kept Fink from utter despair. 

Boxman. Just thinking the name sent a typhoon of emotions that ran through him. With so much time passing, Venomous had a growing longing sensation for Boxman’s nefarious plots, his wicked laughter, the glow of his robotic eye, his soft feathers, and the way he would say that ridiculous nickname, PV. 

“Can we help you- oh Cob! It’s **Professor Venomous**!” Realizing he had just been zoning out, Venomous looked to the source of that strange voice. It was a...Jethro? With arms and legs? “Calling all Jethro’s! Calling all Jethro’s! Professor Venomous is in the south end of the parking lot of Boxmore! “

“Whoa, hey there, uh, Jethro?” Stepping fully out of his car, he put both his hands up and attempted a more genuine smile. The Jethro in question was speaking into his wrist communicator and staring at Professor Venomous with large unblinking eyes. “I’m not here for any trouble, I just-”

“Nice try sneaky snake! You hurt our family, you destroyed all my brothers until there was nothing left!” Pointing his large metal finger at Venomous, Jethro narrowed his eyes and almost like a stampede, an army of Jethro’s appeared. “Now we’ll have to ask you to leave the premises!” Each Jethro had a baton and a small little security guard hat. On their own they would be hilarious, maybe even adorable.

Altogether? A tad bit intimidating. Stepping back a bit, Venomous bumped into his car and looked at the wall of Jethro’s that stood between Venomous and Boxmore. It seemed like such a hassle to go through all this trouble to just get in contact with Boxman. Surely there was an easier way. Hand back on his car handle, he looked at his car window and saw his reflection. He didn’t...like it. Frowning at himself, Venomous sighed and closed his eyes. Turning around he released the handle and stepped forward, staring down the main Jethro that orchestrated all of them.

“I’m not here to hurt anyone, I’ve come to…” Trailing off, Venomous found it hard to get these words out. But it needed to be down. Taking a deep breath, he exhaled through his nose and took another step forward. “I’m sorry.”

All of the Jethro’s gasped at once. It was impressive for two reasons. One is that they were all synchronized and had perfectly timed all of the Jethro’s in this vicinity to gasp for the exact same duration. The other reason was that they didn’t have lungs. 

“He’s- he’s lying!”

“Yeah, there’s no way he’s actually apologizing!”

“He’s trying to trick us, get him!”

Suddenly the Jethro’s were approaching him, Venomous felt a bit of sweat on his neck. Looking around, he saw all their eyes zeroed in on him, biting his lower lip he felt trapped. That was until he realized he had his watch on. Thank Cob for that! Suddenly he felt better, even a bit exhilarated. A broad toothy grin appeared on his lips, eyes suddenly much calmer than before. Like a coiled snake about to strike. 

“I told you I didn’t want to hurt anyone, but if you get in my way I’ll have no other choice.” Without breaking eye contact with the main Jethro, Venomous hit a small button on his watch. This made the watch suddenly expand and start to cover his entire body. His skin nearly seemed metallic, his smirk now very prevalent, and not helping his situation in the slightest. A few of the Jethros launched forward and attempted to hit Venomous’ shins, by this point however his shins were protected. “Aw, that’s cute.” Teasing the robots, he chuckled darkly and stopped as soon as a Jethro was thrown at his head. 

“Hah! Laugh now, uh, purple...guy?” These Jethro, while more advanced than Venomous’ remembered, were still not the most intelligent. “Keep attacking boys, don’t let up until he’s either in his car or in the ground!” Oh, they were very serious about that last part if the look on their faces meant anything. 

“You’re going to regret this.” Voice low, the suit had encased him fully. Now with black high-alloy steel claws, Venomous’ body was now coated in a white to silver scales, with a purple reflect. On the back of his skin armor, a tail manifested from the collected atomic cells. “But I have been dying for a chance to use this suit. So, I suppose thanks in order.” Shrugging, Venomous got into a fighting stance. “So, thanks.” 

Leaping into action, Venomous lept with both arms outstretched, pulling them to his chest while gouging out iron wiring and destroying various Jethro’s in the process. Landing on his feet, he stayed hunched down, taking a deep breath. Each leap of power took power from Venomous’ body on a cellular level. He didn’t have time to think about what was the proper use when he had to dodge six Jethro’s being hurled at him. Leaping into the air, when he came down he moved with the direct precision as an animal fighting its way out of a tight situation. However as he came back down to the ground and landed on five of the six Jethro’s, Venomous found himself surrounded once more. Scoffing, he did a tight twirl and stood tall, his newly formed tail slicing in half the crowd of Jethro’s surrounding him. 

Seeing what they had coming to them in they continued in this same manner, the main Jethro called his brothers to him. Venomous had hoped that meant they were giving up. Of course, that is not what it meant. Watching as they all began to morph into one another, Venomous let his mouth hang open as his gaze was following how enormous they were becoming. Coming to his senses, Venomous attempted to quickly destroy the Jethro’s that were trying to join this monumental Jethro. Lunging at them from every which way, using his tail to his advantage, Venomous had found his second wind but was already feeling depleted. He wasn’t as young as he used to be. Clawing out the eyes of one of the close by Jethro’s, Venomous was finding breathing to be increasingly more difficult as the fight went on. 

Looking up did cause for concern. Any delight at the fact there were no more little blue bots attacking him immediately vanished. Looking at the colossal Jethro, Venomous could vaguely say he was about the same height as the tallest nuclear tower in Boxmore. Which was fairly tall. As he continued to gape at this gigantic bot, the giant Jethro laughed heartily.

“Wowie, it feels pretty great being the tall one for a change!” So he really did still keep this abnormal personality, even while in this state. “Now I think you were just about to leave, or be smashed, up to you, Professor.” Shrugging, Jethro readied his enormous foot by raising it above Venomous. Narrowly dodging it, Venomous jumped and due to the strain on his body, fell short and skid across the parking lot. Grunting as he began to stand, Jethro once more stalked his way. “You’ll never be able to hide from MEGA Jethro!” What a name. Rolling his eyes, Venomous was nearly crushed when he saw Jethro’s foot coming for him once more.

“Jethro- Jethro! You need to listen to me!” Running behind Jethro, he looked to his car and grimaced. He had to take the fight away from his baby. “I only started attacking because you were attacking me first!” Rushing towards the opposite direction, Jethro spotted him instantly and began following him with thundering steps. His voice was hoarse, cracking near the end as his lungs protested the exertion Venomous was putting his body through. “Please, believe me!” Having been cornered into a tight spot against Boxmore, Venomous’ back was literally up against a wall. He tried to jump but the strain made his body spasm as he fell onto the ground. “Dangit!” Hissing in pain, the suit evaporated and went back to docile mode. Venomous was exposed. Looking up, he saw Jethro’s cup foot raising. “Jethro- I just want to talk to Boxman, I want to apologize!” Shielding himself uselessly with his hands, Venomous shut his eyes and waited for the pain. But it never came. Slowly looking back up, he saw the foot was still raised.

“Really?” The booming voice asked, seeming incredulous. Was this really his chance? Having nearly waited too long, Venomous sputtered out the first thing he could think of. 

“Yes, yes, I mean it! It’s just-”

“It’s just, what?!” 

“He changed his number!” Screaming his response, Venomous was a mixture of terror and frustration, a true cocktail for a harsh migraine. Jethro was quiet for a long time before a Jethro emerged from one of the side entrances, Venomous was pretty close to it actually. Looking to that sole Jethro, Venomous blinked.

“Well, come on.” The Jethro waved for Venomous to come over. Staggering to his feet, hair, and outfit now messy, Venomous was able to catch his breath as he started walking. When following the other inside, he looked around. There was no sign of the incinerator. And the machines to make the robots were overseen by a Jethro at each station. It was quiet as they went through the labyrinth-like factory and made it to a familiar door. Boxman’s office, or what used to be his office. Seeing the door itself, even while knowing Boxman wasn’t here, it made his heart flutter. “Go inside, you can talk to the representatives while the other me gets ready.” Nodding at the directions, Venomous didn’t spare this Jethro a second glance as he entered the office. Many memories, many wonderful, lovely memories flooded him. 

Thankfully, due to the slight changes in decore, Venomous wasn’t pulled into any of his flashbacks. But he did have another issue. He was facing Ernesto and Mikayla. Neither of which looked to be very happy with Venomous’ very presence. Ernesto was sitting behind Boxman’s desk, Mikayla was laying on it in a very feline position. Ernesto stood, walking around his desk, Mikayla followed dutifully, hopping off the desk gracefully and the dangerous tail swishing back and forth. Adjusting his coat and dusting himself off, he felt a bit self-conscious from how the pair of them looked at him. 

“So if I understand correctly, you’re here to get our father’s new phone number. Is that right?”

“Ah, well, yes.”

The two shared a look, then looked to Venomous. Who was incredibly disheveled, despite his futile attempts to straighten out his appearance after the fight. 

“Why are you asking for it _now_?”

“What?” That question took him by surprise. “What do you mean, why now?”

“You know you could have called earlier- father only changed his number recently. Very recently.” 

“What?” How recent?

“Mikayla!”

“What she means is, father had been holding out hope that you would try to reconnect. He waited here for you.” Sternly looking at Venomous with his one eye, he gestured to where Boxman’s desk rested. Painfully empty without the round fool of a villain occupying it. “For months after you returned, but just because he waited doesn’t change the fact you missed your window. You took so long and gave him no implication of ever attempting to reach out..”

“Why the hell didn’t he try to call me?!” Suddenly upset, Venomous grabbed the front of his chest. As if to hold in his pain. “Why didn’t he bother to even try and contact me?” His voice quieted at the end. His eyes burning, but his pride denying them. Mikayla and Ernesto shared a look, neither looked pleased as Ernesto spoke. 

“He did.”

“..._what_?” It was the only thing he could croak out, his mouth suddenly very dry. The air- where did it go? Was everything suddenly tilting- wait, no. No. Ernesto was lying. “You’re lying.” Voicing his opinion, it was much weaker when spoken aloud.

“No. Father attempted to call you, he tried to email you, he even tried to text you! And you know him, he detests text messaging!” 

Why didn’t Venomous know? How did he not-

“I destroyed the cell towers on the planet I was on.” His own voice sounded so distant, both hands gripping his hair as Venomous began processing all of this. “So… what you’re telling me is that… Boxman was trying to call me all this time but he couldn’t…”

“Because you didn’t think about anything other than yourself.” 

Where did he hear that before?

“Shut up.” 

Staring between two bots, Venomous looked around and saw so much had changed. Not all of this was just from Boxman leaving. No, things must have changed while he was off galavanting on another planet. All the while Boxman toiled away here, surely suffering on his own. Looking to the ground, Venomous felt as if his limbs were incredibly heavy. Made of led. A few strands of black hair falling in front of his face, he felt his heart squeezing painfully. Taking a few calming breathes did barely a dent. All this time, the months he spent away and when he came back, he thought Boxman had just moved on. Forgotten all about him. When really it was the other way around. 

“I tried to just keep going with my life.” Falling to his knees, Venomous’ hands hit the floor. It hurt. Everything hurt. Ernesto tried to say something, Venomous didn’t care. “I didn’t try calling him because I was stubborn. I thought if he could just… just give me a sign, a single message, something to show that he still cared.” And he wasted it. Mikayla said her name, surely commenting on this pitiful state. But Venomous didn’t care. “I hurt him.”

“Yes, you did.” That voice- looking behind him, Venomous spotted a single Jethro. It was wearing a magnet tie. It walked over with its tiny arms behind its body. “But is that new?” Staring at this small creature as it came right up to Venomous, it continued on. “First you make rash decisions that concern both of you, then you give in to temptations that you know will leave horrifying consequences for those around you.”

“I didn’t mean to!”

“Oh, but didn’t you?” Looking back up to Ernesto, who walked around with Mikayla following him, he joined the sole Jethro. “You had a choice from what I understood. You had the option to ignore that tiny voice, you had the time and resources to get help.”

“Mikayla.”

“You’re right Mikayla, he also had us.” 

Suddenly, looking at these three robots… Venomous could see the damage he caused. Not just to his relationship with Boxman, but the Boxy bunch as a whole. 

“We trusted you.” Jethro let his arms fall to his sides. He looked as upset as a robot could with hardly any facial features. 

“We treated you as family.” Ernesto’s arms that were crossed also fell apart. His voice sounded upset.

“Mikayla!”

“That’s true, Mikayla.” Jethro this time spoke for her, he touched her arm and looked from her to Venomous. “We loved you, and Fink. But you betrayed us all Professor.” 

He did. He was terrible and mangled a perfectly good relationship he had with all of them. They looked so disappointed, and that hurt more than any Jethro to the head ever could. Looking down to his hands that were still planted on the ground, Venomous moved and knelt before the three robots. On his hands and knees, he looked up at them all and spoke with the utmost sincerity. 

“I’m sorry, Jethro, Ernesto, Mikayla.” Looking to each of them as he said their respective names. “I should never have done those awful, terrible things. You all treated me like family. You opened up to Fink, you helped her grow and you...you helped me grow.” Looking down briefly, he felt his words piling up. Before he could stop it, he squeezed his eyes shut tight and blurted out; “I love you all so much!” Once it was said, Venomous kept his head bowed down as silence hung in the room. 

Finally, someone said something to soothe the tension.

“Stand up.” 

Looking at Ernesto, Venomous got to his feet and inhaled long and exhaled hard. His entire frame felt so fragile from being so emotionally vulnerable. Looking between the three of them, he could see that they really believed him. Because he was the most honest he had been in a long time. 

“We believe you,” Jethro spoke up this time, continuing on as he was lifted by Mikayla and was just at eye-level with Venomous. “However we won’t give you father’s number.”

“You’ll have to talk to Darrell, Shannon and Raymond before you can talk to him.” Ernesto chimed in, printing something out from the back of his neck and offering the receipt to Venomous. “Here’s where they currently reside.”

Venomous looked at the piece of paper and inwardly sighed. Great. This was going to be the hardest emotional rollercoaster that he’d have to endure in such a long time. But he wouldn’t give up. He had the chance to write his wrongs and he wasn’t going to squander it. Reading over the names, he opted for going with Shannon and Raymond. Kill two bots with one stone.

“Thank you, really.” Looking from the paper to the trio, Venomous pulled out a strained, yet honest, smile. 

“You might not wanna thank us just yet, pal.” Jethro wagged his finger at Venomous. 

“It’s true. While we are giving you a chance, going through those three will be rough. They had felt rather close to you, and the fact that you blind-sided them and father like that…”

“Mikayla.”

“Exactly, Mikayla!” Jethro jumped a bit and landed on the ground on his feet. “Those three are probably more upset than father was! Haha, they might just even kill you!”

“...Right.” Looking to the paper then back to the bots, Venomous cleared his throat awkwardly. “Well, I have to get home. Fink’s babysitter is going home soon and I don’t want her being home and I’m not there.”

“Oh, tell her we say hi!” Ernesto sounded absolutely giddy, his circular body nearly jumping fully off the ground.

“Mikayla!” It almost sounded as if Mikayla was...purring? Was it her engine? Did she have an engine??

“Make sure she knows she’s always welcomed at Boxmore!” Jethro’s lit up nearly as he exclaimed that. 

“Right, yeah. Thanks again.” Quickly making a hasty retreat, Venomous looked once more at the paper and pocketed it before he got to his car. There was a bit of dust on the back and someone had written ‘wash me’. The dust seemed to have been poured on it. Looking behind him he spotted two Jethro’s giggling behind a bush. “Figures.” Rolling his eyes, Venomous got in the car and turned it on. 

The car ride home was filled with various music that Venomous didn't bother listening to. His mind racing as he thought about all that had happened. His hair was a mess. His make up? Holding up pretty well. And his physical form? Strained from all the extraneous action he had dealt with today. And emotionally? He was empty. He was just happy to finally get up the hill and into his garage. His watched beeped at him that he needed to charge it. Throwing it onto the charging port he kept in the kitchen for convenience's sake, he went through the cupboards and grabbed a mug with a snake handle. Putting it under the ice dispenser of his fridge, the sensor went off and ice clacked inside the mug. 

“BOSS! you're home! The babysitter left and I invited a friend from school!”

Oh great. 

“Fink, I wish you would have talked to me first before inviting someone over.” Groaning as he grabbed a jug of iced tea from the fridge, he began pouring it in his mug. Shaking his head, he had to pull himself out of this funk. Hearing some muttering going on from the hallway, Venomous had no way of hearing who this friend was. But he should be happy Fink was finally making some friends. Rolling his shoulders, he grabbed some pain reliever from the top shelf and popped two into his mouth and downed it with his drink. Feeling better after that he cleared his throat and set the mug down. “...Would you and your friend like some snacks?” He could do snacks. Snacks were easy.

“Yeah! We want Cheesy crackers!”

“Fink, you can’t just-”

“Cheesy crackers! Cheesy crackers!”

Sighing, Venomous put the mug away and closed the fridge door. While usually, he would try to tell her that cheesy crackers can't be her only source of nourishment, he just didn't have the energy right now. Hearing their soft pitter-patter, Venomous turned around back to where he had grabbed the pills. Putting those away on a high shelf he shut the door, and then he opened another. Rustling through the cupboards, he grabbed the box of cheesy crackers and pulled out two packets. Really, this wasn’t even cheese. They spelled the word cheese with a z. When he turned around he was staring at the packets, hearing Fink and her companion sit on the stools near the island just outside the kitchen. As he began to leave the kitchen he could pick up bits and pieces of what they were saying. They were talking about something- the play that Fink was directing most likely. Once he went towards the dining room, Venomous looked up, and when he saw Fink’s friend he nearly dropped their snacks. 

“Is that- Dendy?”

Having set the snacks on the island in front of the stools, Fink grabbed them and put one in front of Dendy as she opened her's overzealous.

“Yes, hello Professor.” Smiling innocently, the kappa who was best friends with his son was now in his dining room, eating a 'cheese' coated cracker stick and staring at him intently. Today, was not his day.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry about posting this chapter a bit late! I was supposed to have today off, along with tomorrow, however someone at work called out sick and I needed the hours. But here's the chapter! It's not beta'd but I'll edit it later, for now I just wanted to get it out to all of you! Thank you to all of the wonderful people who have been commenting on the previous chapters, they inspire me and make me more enthused about writing the next chapter, so thank you. And to all who have been leaving kudos or bookmarking this, I love you and I hope you enjoy this chapter as well! Each comment is loved and appreciated! And so are all of you!


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